Constantius II

Constantius II (7 August 317-3 November 361) was Roman emperor from 350 to 361, succeeding Constans I and preceding Julian the Apostate.

Biography
Constantius was born on 7 August 317 in Sirmium, Pannonia (Sremska Mitrovica, Serbia), the son of Constantine the Great. He became a general of the Roman Empire during the wars with the Sassanids in Persia, winning the Battle of Narasara and capturing Amida. On his father's death in 337, Constantius received Constantinople, Thrace, Asia Minor, Syria, Egypt, and Cyrenaica, and he fought against the Sassanids. After the death of his brother Constantine II in battle at Aquileia in 340 and his brother Constans I's murder by the usurper Magnentius in 350, Constantius became the ruler of the Roman Empire. In 353, he killed the usurper and consolidated his rule in Rome, and he dealt with many more usurpers and rebels. In 360, he headed east when the Sassanids retook Amida and destroyed many cities in Asia Minor, leading to his cousin Julian the Apostate usurping power from him while Constantius was in the east; Constantius' request for reinforcements from Julian led to Julian making himself Augustus. Constantius headed west to face Julian in battle, but he died in Mopsuestia in Cilicia and made Julian his rightful successor.